"I've got a lot of friends on that team," Williams said. "I like to see how they're doing. I wish the best for Coach Corbin, so I definitely check on them a lot."

"I feel like they're going to make the playoffs. They're playing solid basketball on both ends of the floor right now," Williams said. "I think Coach Corbin's doing a great job of leading the guys. They've got a good mix of veterans and youth, and I think it's working for them."

"I just haven't played good, haven't really shot good against them," said Williams, noting that the Jazz have changed their defensive approach this season. "They definitely did a good job defending me, making things tough on me. They pushed us out of our offense a lot, which definitely affects me."

"They're playing good basketball right now," Williams said about the Jazz. "They've just got to finish strong. They're right there."

Him coming back seems to be wishful thinking, although I'm sure he may have some regrets about getting traded and having to carry the Nets on his back for the past 2 years when he could have had guys like Al Jeff and Millsap helping him.

After the ups and downs of eight NBA seasons, Williams can appreciate the situation he's in as he prepares to take the floor Wednesday night to lead the new-look Nets in their season opener in Cleveland. "You take things for granted," Williams said Tuesday. "You take players for granted that you played with. You start nitpicking at what people can do instead of what they can't do. So you definitely take it for granted. I think a lot of guys have to go through that to really understand. I've never been one of those guys who wanted to be the man or needed to be the man. "My problem in Utah was I wanted to win so badly and letting that get the better of me. So I'm excited for this group right now. It's a great group to be a part of."